Review: Koaloha tenor
I bought a Koaloha Tenor recently and posted a review in the Review Section over at the main site.
It appears that this forum section is becoming the place to be for uke reviews, so please allow a c&p of the review below.
Koaloha KTM-00 Tenor Ukulele
Price paid: $850 (new)
Features: 9
A May 2009 Koaloha tenor, it still had the smell of glue when it arrived at my door. No electronics, just wood & stringz. The finish on these ukes is glossy and OK, not extremely smooth but definitely not sloppy either. It looks like a solid uke that could stand a lot of playing. Grover tuners are precise and turn smoothly. An online purchase with a nice hardcase, tuner & book.
Sound: 9
Bought for high-G, to contrast a very mellow uke I use with low tuning. Very clear/bright and singing sound, it becomes even better with hard strumming and firm picking. Very satisfied with the overall sound using the Worth clears that came with it, and I see no reason to think about other string brands to enhance any missing parts in the sound. Just lovely.
Action, Fit and Finish: 7
Set-up is fine, action does not need improvement for me personally, the koa grain looks nice with a dark streak in the center. Unfortunately, my tenor has/had two (and a half) minor flaws.
Reliability/Durability: 9
This Koaloha feels sturdy, there are no small bits or parts that look like they would fall off or break, and the finish looks like it can take a beating. The whole uke feels like a precise instrument and (in spite of said minor flaws) it is a joy to hold and to play.
Customer Support: 10
Despite some minor niggles above, I have had no need to contact Koaloha about their products. One of the reasons I decided on a Koaloha though, was the personal feel of the brand and the fact that they are present on the UU forums with pleasant and helpful reactions to users with potential problems or questions. This kind of transparency is a great good for any company.
Overall Rating: 9
I have played for 1.5 years and own a Fluke and a low-end luthier-made koa tenor. The Koaloha fills the "bright, happy, and cool high-G" spot in my arsenal and the luthier-made and this one should go a long way until I get the urge to go look for something else. Would I have known about the finish flaws, I might have reconsidered or asked to fix them but in retrospect, it is a wonderful instrument and I am very happy to have bought it. If it got stolen, another Koaloha would certainly be a possibility, the look is quite special as well. Compared with my other higher-end uke it is a bit neck-heavy, but this actually works fine when holding it standing up. This one is a bit heavier as well, but with the added solidity. The "custom" uke cuts the 500g mark, and almost felt brittle at first. I had been considering a Kanile'a, which are also very light, but free shipping and the cool looks and the timing brought me to this one. Now the task is to learn to play this so loud it will start to scream, but for the time being it still takes me for a ride every time I lift it out of the case.
For your reference, off to strum a bit now :music:
I bought a Koaloha Tenor recently and posted a review in the Review Section over at the main site.
It appears that this forum section is becoming the place to be for uke reviews, so please allow a c&p of the review below.
Koaloha KTM-00 Tenor Ukulele
Price paid: $850 (new)
Features: 9
A May 2009 Koaloha tenor, it still had the smell of glue when it arrived at my door. No electronics, just wood & stringz. The finish on these ukes is glossy and OK, not extremely smooth but definitely not sloppy either. It looks like a solid uke that could stand a lot of playing. Grover tuners are precise and turn smoothly. An online purchase with a nice hardcase, tuner & book.
Sound: 9
Bought for high-G, to contrast a very mellow uke I use with low tuning. Very clear/bright and singing sound, it becomes even better with hard strumming and firm picking. Very satisfied with the overall sound using the Worth clears that came with it, and I see no reason to think about other string brands to enhance any missing parts in the sound. Just lovely.
Action, Fit and Finish: 7
Set-up is fine, action does not need improvement for me personally, the koa grain looks nice with a dark streak in the center. Unfortunately, my tenor has/had two (and a half) minor flaws.
- First, the binding on one side of the fretboard (near the highest frets was rough and had not been sanded flush with the actual fretboard itself. I have used a piece of fine sand paper to straighten this out and it looks good now. None of the Koalohas I have seen in stores had any flaws I could notice, so I am sure it was just accidental, but to be fair this should have been noticed either in the factory or during the seller's setup.
- The second minor aesthetic flaw is that on one side of the neck, where the binding is supposed to form a straight and sharp edge of the fretboard, it is slightly rounded off, as in how sharp wooden edges look when they are rubbed over and over for many years. My uneducated guess is someone went over this edge with a file and then realized he should stop. This is visible when the light falls onto the polished wood, and I can not fix it myself nor will it get better. Or at least not until the rest of the uke looks very used as well.
- A third small thing: while the bridge is flawless, the nut looks like it got a little bump and it is a bit grimy. I had expected these parts to be kept cleaner during the manufacturing process, but since it does not harm the sound or functioning of the uke in any way it is not something that would influence my decision to buy. The above two could be.
Reliability/Durability: 9
This Koaloha feels sturdy, there are no small bits or parts that look like they would fall off or break, and the finish looks like it can take a beating. The whole uke feels like a precise instrument and (in spite of said minor flaws) it is a joy to hold and to play.
Customer Support: 10
Despite some minor niggles above, I have had no need to contact Koaloha about their products. One of the reasons I decided on a Koaloha though, was the personal feel of the brand and the fact that they are present on the UU forums with pleasant and helpful reactions to users with potential problems or questions. This kind of transparency is a great good for any company.
Overall Rating: 9
I have played for 1.5 years and own a Fluke and a low-end luthier-made koa tenor. The Koaloha fills the "bright, happy, and cool high-G" spot in my arsenal and the luthier-made and this one should go a long way until I get the urge to go look for something else. Would I have known about the finish flaws, I might have reconsidered or asked to fix them but in retrospect, it is a wonderful instrument and I am very happy to have bought it. If it got stolen, another Koaloha would certainly be a possibility, the look is quite special as well. Compared with my other higher-end uke it is a bit neck-heavy, but this actually works fine when holding it standing up. This one is a bit heavier as well, but with the added solidity. The "custom" uke cuts the 500g mark, and almost felt brittle at first. I had been considering a Kanile'a, which are also very light, but free shipping and the cool looks and the timing brought me to this one. Now the task is to learn to play this so loud it will start to scream, but for the time being it still takes me for a ride every time I lift it out of the case.
For your reference, off to strum a bit now :music:
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